AMD buys Fei-Fei Li’s World Labs for $8.2 billion

AMD has agreed to acquire World Labs, the spatial intelligence startup founded by AI pioneer Fei-Fei Li, in an all-stock deal worth $8.2 billion.
The deal, announced on September 28, is expected to close by the end of 2026. Li will join AMD as executive vice-president and chief scientist, reporting directly to chief executive Lisa Su.
World Labs builds AI models that understand three-dimensional space. Its Marble product generates interactive 3D worlds from images, and its Atlas release pushed the field of so-called spatial intelligence forward.
AMD said the acquisition strengthens its position in AI software, where it has been chasing Nvidia. The deal brings top research talent and new capabilities for robotics, simulation and embodied AI.
The transaction is one of the largest AI startup acquisitions of the year. It comes as chipmakers race to offer complete AI platforms rather than just hardware. AMD’s shares rose on the news, as investors welcomed the company’s push into frontier AI research.
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